Introduction

Just as at (I)GCSE, the best AS and A Level English Literature essays make use of frequent, brief, relevant quotations, which are neatly embedded into the discussion. These are vital to illustrate your points and are closely connected with the close textual analysis skills you need to demonstrate in every essay. This topic covers how to select, use and edit quotations from your texts so that they work for you.

Task

The following document explains everything you need to know about quotations and how you should use them:

PRINT OUT & READ – Style Tip 2: Using Quotations

Top Tip

Please also note that all of your Cambridge AS and AL English Literature exams are closed text, which means you cannot take your set texts into the exams and so you will need to learn a good range of quotations from each.
This can be time-consuming, so it’s a good idea to plan ahead and begin learning relevant quotations after you’ve finished studying each set text.
The following document contains some helpful tips on learning quotations:

PRINT OUT & READ – Quotations and the Exams